Un General Secretary Antonio Guterres (L) listens to US President Donald Trump as he opens the UN Security Council meeting on September 26, 2018 in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. / AFP PHOTO / Don EMMERT

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday chaired the ongoing session of the Security Council at the United Nations General Assembly

Speaking of Bashar Assad’s regime use of chemical weapons against Syrian civilians during clashes with rebel forces, Trump said “Syria’s butchery is enabled by Russia and Iran.”

Trump also addressed US policy on Iran, advances in the denuclearization of North Korea and his administration’s trade war with China during his opening statement.

Seated at the center of an arc-shaped table, Trump immediately uttered tough words against Iran, saying that a government with Iran’s track record “must never be allowed to obtain” a nuclear weapon.

At the same time, he thanked Iran, Russia and Syria for slowing their attack on Idlib province in Syria.

Last week, Russia and Turkey reached a deal to avert an offensive against Idlib, the last major rebel-held stronghold in Syria.

Trump also said many things are happening “behind the scenes” in North Korea, and that good news would be coming in the coming months and years. Trump also commended Kim Jong Un for reaffirming his commitment to denuclearization, prosperity and peace for the peninsula.